BARCELONA, Spain -- Pastor Maldonado held off Fernando Alonso to win the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday and give Williams its first Formula One victory in eight years. Maldonado, starting from pole position, held his nerve as he withstood the challenge of Ferraris Spanish driver to take the 66-lap race at the Catalunya Circuit by 3.1 seconds and give F1 its fifth different race winner of a so far unpredictable season. Maldonado become the sports first Venezuelan winner, while Williams 114th triumph was its first since the 2004 Brazilian GP. "Its a wonderful day for me and the team. An unforgettable race," said Maldonado, who was hoisted onto the shoulders of Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen before being doused in champagne on his first visit to the podium. "It was a tough race, with the strategy and a couple of laps we were struggling. But the car was so competitive from the first lap." Maldonados victory provided icing on the cake for Frank Williams as the team celebrated its longtime team principals 70th birthday this weekend. Williams celebration speech, however, was cut short after a fire broke out in the teams garage after the race. No injuries were reported. Raikkonen made up nearly 20 seconds over the final stretch to finish 3.8 seconds behind Maldonado in third, ahead of Lotus teammate Romain Grosjean. Kamui Kobayashi of Sauber was fifth, ahead of two-time defending F1 champion Sebastian Vettel, who charged past Nico Rosbergs Mercedes to take sixth and maintain a share of the overall F1 points lead. The Red Bull driver, who was given a drive-through penalty during the race, shares 61 points at the top of the driver standings with Alonso through five races. It is F1s most varied start since 1983, when five different drivers also opened the season with victories. Hamilton is third with 53 points, while Raikkonen has 49, one better than Red Bull driver Mark Webber, who finished 11th. The top seven drivers are separated by less than the 25 points awarded to the winner of each race, and Grosjean trails the top two by 26 points. "These tires are contributing to an extraordinary season," McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh said. "Anyone who makes predictions in the sport right now would be nuts." Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg was seventh and Lewis Hamilton, demoted from pole to last place in the 24-car field because of a rule breach, finished eighth for McLaren. Hamilton finished ahead of teammate Jenson Button with Force India driver Nico Hulkenberg taking the last two points in 10th. Alonso provided home fans with a steely start as the two-time champion kept his inside line, under pressure from Maldonado. The Spaniard led around the first corner with Raikkonen moving ahead of Grosjean to sit third. Hamilton, who set the fastest lap in Saturdays qualifying but failed to retain enough fuel in his tank to get back into the pits, overcame a poor first stop when his crew failed to clear a tire quickly to stay in the points. He moved as high as fifth after the second round of stops, when Maldonado took over the lead from Alonso, with Raikkonen still ahead of Grosjean. "It was the best I could do," said Hamilton, who felt he had a point to prove. "I was one of the only ones to do a two-stop strategy and people always commenting how aggressive my driving style is, so I hope today I could prove them wrong." Maldonado lost time on his third stop but managed to eventually get past Raikkonen to open up a gap on Alonso, who passed the Finn one lap later to stay on Maldonados back. "It was a fantastic start. We took the momentum there and led the race for the first start but Williams anticipated (our pit) stop and got in front," said Alonso, who finished runner-up for the fourth time. "We tried a couple of times to get in front but it wasnt possible." The 27-year-old Maldonado drove with confidence down the final stretch despite Alonso, whose lone victory here was in 2006, bearing down on him. "There was some moments where he was so close but I managed the gap," Maldonado said. Michael Schumacher bowed out after running into the back of Bruno Sennas Williams on lap 14, the German drivers terrible season getting worse as he failed to finish for the third time while also knocking his Brazilian rival out of the race. Hamilton stayed third in the driver standings ahead of Raikkonen going into the Monaco GP on May 27. "Its a great opportunity for us to be strong again," Maldonado said. "Consistency will be the most important thing this championship." wholesale jerseys . "I thought that was probably the best game we have played," said Hiller. "When you play Spokane, you accept that challenge. 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Louis, MO (Sports Network) - Albert Pujols went 3-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI, including the game-winning solo shot in the 12th inning to give the St.SAN FRANCISCO - It took a few more tries than Bruce Bochy would have liked to earn his 1,500th managerial win. He might remember this one for a while considering it came in the nightcap of a doubleheader wearing road grey uniforms while batting first as the home team. Pablo Sandoval hit a two-run double to help Bochy reach the milestone victory, and the San Francisco Giants split a straight doubleheader with the Cincinnati Reds with a 5-3 victory in the nightcap Tuesday. "I dont know what that number means, except Im fortunate Ive been doing this as long as I have," Bochy said. "Im thankful. I know how lucky I am." Hunter Pence hit an RBI single, Gregor Blanco had a sacrifice fly, and Brandon Belt added an RBI groundout in San Franciscos first win in six tries against the Reds this season after being outscored 34-6 in the first five meetings — including 11-0 on Monday night and 9-3 in the opener Tuesday. The Reds had 10 hits after combining for 32 in the first two games. The teams were forced to make up a July 4 rainout at Great American Ball Park. Cincinnati batted last and wore home uniforms as the visiting team. Bochy became the 21st manager with 1,500 wins and third active along with Reds skipper Dusty Baker and Detroits Jim Leyland. Bochy said "its very humbling" to be mentioned among such managers. "Hes a fine manager. Hes a guy that I enjoy managing against," Baker said. "I didnt even know it was 1,500, so congratulations to Bruce." Bochy tipped his cap to the crowd when the milestone was announced as players shook hands afterward. And Barry Zito, the pitcher Bochy removed one out from qualifying for a win, praised the skippers feat. "I think hes a very underrated manager, maybe because hes a quiet guy and doesnt toot his own horn," Zito said. "Thats a very special accomplishment and were all very happy for him." The Giants were outscored 34-6 over their first five games with Cincinnati before doing just enough in Tuesdays second game. Devin Mesoraco had a three-run homer among his three hits in the opener to put him at 6 for 9 with two homers through the first two games. He didnt start the second game but struck out as a pinch-hitter to end the seventh, with a runner on second, and stayed in the game. The Reds called up former Stanford right-hander Greg Reynolds (0-1), a native of nearby Pacifica, from Triple-A Louisville to start the second game. He allowed five runs and eight hits in five innings of his first big league outing since a start Sept. 25, 2011, for Colorado. Santiago Casilla (4-2) struck out two in 1 1-3 innings for the win, then Sergio Romo recorded the final four outs for his 24th save in 27 opportunities. He struck out Brandon Phillips to end the eighth with two runners aboard, then struck out the side in the ninth after Jay Bruces leadoff single — including Mesoraco to end it. Cassilla was the third pitcher in relief of struggling lefty Zito, replaced after allowing a pair of two-out hits in the fifth including Todd Fraziers RBI double.dddddddddddd Zito, who won Game 1 of the World Series last fall, saw his winless streak reach nine starts since the lefty beat Oakland on May 30. Frazier finished with two doubles and three of Cincinnatis hits on a night the Reds missed multiple chances. They stranded 14 baserunners, seven in scoring position. Bruce also had three hits. "We were never really out of it," Bruce said. "We just couldnt get the timely hit, and Barry was making enough pitches to skirt around it." Earlier, Joey Votto and Zack Cozart also homered for the swinging Reds, who had pizza and sushi delivered to the clubhouse for a quick dinner between games. "Weve got some hot bats," Mesoraco said after the opener. "Ride it out as long as you can. You want to go out there and put up as many runs as you can, especially early, and take a little pressure off the starting pitcher. Thats what we were able to do the last two nights." Cozart finished 4 for 4 with two RBIs and three runs to back Tony Cingrani (4-1). The left-hander was added to the roster as the Reds permitted 26th player for the doubleheader. He was headed back to the Arizona Rookie League after the game to fulfil the final five days required after being optioned previously to the minors. He is set to return and start Sunday for Cincinnati. The Reds had dominated the Giants this year after allowing San Francisco to rally from an 0-2 deficit to win the NL division series matchup last October. In the opener, the Reds knocked Eric Surkamp (0-1) out after 2 2-3 innings in his first start since late September 2011 after undergoing Tommy John elbow surgery. "I still have a lot of work to do coming back," Surkamp said. "I feel like Im close. I feel a little herky-jerky throwing pitches." Notes: Attendance for the two-for-one at AT&T Park was 42,310. Both games count as home stats for the Giants. ... Between games, the Reds optioned INF Neftali Soto to Triple-A Louisville and transferred LHP Sean Marshall to the 60-day disabled list. ... Shin-Soo Choo had his career-best hitting streak for the Reds snapped at 16 games in the opener. He was 0 for 6 on the day. ... Cincinnati played its first single-admission doubleheader since Aug. 24, 2011, at the Marlins. ... The Giants designated for assignment RHP Hunter Strickland to clear room on the 40-man roster for Yusmeiro Petit, who struck out seven in 5 1-3 innings of relief in Game 1 after his contract was purchased from Triple-A Fresno. San Francisco optioned RHP George Kontos to Fresno a day after he threw a career-high 63 pitches in 3 1-3 innings. ... The Giants will visit President Obama in the White House on Monday to celebrate the franchises World Series championship from last fall. ' ' '